it was barbara boxer that brought us over the edge. guys, this is a legitimate stimulus project. this is a legitimate shot already project that would not have taken place a year ahead of schedule. it saved the taxpayers $90 million. that was for the leadership of speaker policy and president obama. 6200 jobs will be created over the course of this project, direct and indirect. 2600 direct jobs. you're seeing the hard hats and some of those folks. not just pictures. they are here physically with us. their lives have been enhanced because of the stimulus project. it was noted $100 million or more with the tiger grant got us a year ahead of schedule. in 2013 this will be done. what an extraordinary thing. this is right around the corner. this is real time construction and real leadership.

thank you, speaker policy. thank you, barbara boxer. thank you, senator feinstein. thank you to jake mgoldrick. we had regional projects related to work on celebrity -- collectively together. he helped organize a from work with the golden gate bridge district and other leaders throughout the region. patching together money, patching together collaboration, patching together those wounds that have opened up in the course of this project. in closing, i think you not only for your introduction but for your stewardship and leadership and constancy. thank you for your faith, love, and devotion. this is one of the things i know

you care deeply about. that showed throughout the course of this effort and the course of the work that is being done here. thank you very much. [applause] >> i remember then that chair jake mcgoldrick saying to the mayor in an early speech that he jogged every morning under those drives. he said, "do not job under the structure. you never know what could happen." [laughter] we get now to the point here where people are too cold and we need to wrap up quickly, but we still have a couple more speakers. let me very quickly acknowledge,

as the mayor said, and echoing his words, the incredible work of the people that are actually delivering this project on the ground. most of them do not freeze because they are actually moving around when they are at the construction site. others are moving around and beating the bushes in other places, particularly finding local and minority-owned, small and disadvantaged businesses. they need to be part of the reality of both the stimulus and the rehabilitation of the entire infrastructure in this country. they are the future. they are the reality today in this project as well. i want to take a quick second to a knowledge paul prendergast and his team, the tremendous job they have done in finding those people and demonstrating that minority-owned businesses are perfectly qualified to add value

to a project of this size. we have them right here in san francisco. we do not need to import them from mars. they are prepared to do a good job. we have to connect them to the right people. that is what paul and his team is doing and it deserves acknowledgement. [applause] there is also, because i will forget later, a big and warm hearted acknowledgement to the rpd joint venture represented here by several people who cannot see now, the engineering firm that has been our right hand in getting this project designed and ready to go. and i want to also acknowledged representatives from the u.s. department of congress -- department of commerce minority development agency who are here today. and of course the private sector, our most important and

valued partner in delivering this project. i think bob is here today. those are the folks that are going to be building the town. there are contractors making a big impact here not just in building things but in incorporating a real commitment to small and local business participation, and doing an extraordinary job that i believe is going to become a paradigmatic example in the rest of the state, because these numbers are not to be ignored. and of course the small businesses themselves, [unintelligible] now let me take a second to a knowledge the chair of the san

francisco transportation authority, my current boss, a man who i think it's well within the lineup of visionaries and people with the big picture. ross has been a member of the board of supervisors since 2004. he is on his first term as chair of the authority since january. during that time he has given me the opportunity to appreciate just how able he is to comprehend the importance of these projects and these programs from the big picture. i am not just talking about transportation and infrastructure. i am talking about the way these projects relate to the ultimate goals we have at the transportation authority and that we have as a city, with the mayor's leadership, to create a more livable and balanced environment for everyone, where there is room for cars, because we are not activists or extremists, and there is room for bicycles

because we are not just focused on the car, and there is room for people to walk because we have to have a pedestrian environment to have a rich cultural environment to live in. and i think he brings to the authority board that vision and that is reflected in the way he leads us. let me take a second now in asking you to welcome supervisor mirkarimi of the board of supervisors. >> good morning. i am very delighted and proud to be here. i should explain that you might see both the mayor and myself and the president of the board of supervisors grinning. it may be the cold. we are also a little bit giddy because it was early this morning after a 13 hour board meeting that we just put to bed our budget of $6.50 billion. so we are quite delighted about that as well.

so it is good to be here with you. [applause] the federal highway administrator, mayor newsom, and president david chiu, i am glad to address you on the occasion of such an important event in the development of the new presidio parkway. the start of construction of the first major tunnel. as chair of our county transportation authority board, i am delighted to welcome you to san francisco on this fine morning. it is not often that we get to mark the commencement of construction of something this big and this important, so i think it is very fitting that we take time to mark this moment appropriately. i think this tunnel is a perfect allegory. it is as if we are digging our way to a different dimension. in a sense, the entire project

will flow through this tunnel, and when we come out the other and we will have succeeded in reshaping the relationship between the roadway and the park. we will have a project that is worthy of its location in the largest urban national park. but that will not be all, because we also have succeeded in our goal of achieving seismic safety for the traveling public at least a year earlier than originally anticipated. in this day and age, that says a great deal. it is very important to us. we put safety first. we decided that for access to the golden gate bridge from san francisco it is not safe to continue a facility whose federal structural rating was two out of 100. it will not achieve its efficiency rating of 30 after 100 after extensive costly stopgap work on the high volume

deck. the new parkway will be a facility for the 21st century, designed for sustainability. this will set a new standard for public works of its kind by recycling every cubic inch of the demolition materials, by fairly treating all water runoff from the roadway itself, by reducing impact on the spectacular views, and i finally allowing direct access to the presidio for buses, pedestrians, and cyclists in addition to automobiles. that matters a great deal for us. it lies in our constituency of san francisco endeavoring to be america's greenest city. it is the result of a grass- roots movement to find a lasting solution to decades old projects -- all the problems. many local, regional, state, federal agencies, and civic groups improved this.

the mayor was correct in recognizing one of my predecessors, supervisor jake mcgolder, as well as my immediate supervisor. to the innovations in the design we have added construction innovations like the oscillator, the largest in the world, that can sink huge 11 foot piles into the ground without pounding them and avoiding transmitting vibrations to the many historic buildings near the construction site. that was a huge step in securing the approval of the california transportation officials to move the project's second phase. in doing so, the project will spearhead a move in california toward considering the full cycle cost of projects, not just the construction cost but also the maintenance and rehabilitation cost, and responsibly accounting for those over three decades into the future.

we will adequately maintain our roads and our transit system. that is what is needed in order to assure the state infrastructure remains in good repair for many years to come. it is fitting that the presidio parkway should be leading the way. i cannot and my remarks without acknowledging in a curtailed fashion the partnership of the federal government in the process, and particularly the leadership of secretary ray low hood -- ray lahood. they supported this project with generous allocations. i would be remiss if i did not also acknowledge the tremendous partnership that we have with the state, particularly through the good offices of the secretary and his staff. thank you of course speaker of the house nancy pelosi. we look forward to continue a

fruitful partnership in the years to come. thank you very much. [applause] >> let me take a second now to acknowledge the president of the san francisco board of supervisors, david chiu, who has been a member of the board for the last year and a half and has impressed me as someone who cares about transportation despite the fact that he has to be in the trenches, fighting the battles on everything on the budget. our board does not have the luxury of being a single person -- a single purpose board. they have to where construction has at times, but the have to reconcile the priorities of everything else. but that is what makes for a livable city. it is actually a very good thing. i think david dhichiu brings to the table a great commitment to

a trend that first city and also an equanimity that allows him to understand that great roadway projects can be designed for a park successfully and that it is one of the needs a very big city would have. join me in welcoming the president of the board of supervisors. [applause] >> per se i have to ask, can everyone feel your fingers? do we need to do a seven minute stretch? i am going to give the briefest remarks ever. seriously, i want to thank our friends from washington dc. i want to thank our friends from sacramento. i want to think our friends from every sector in the bay area for this tremendous project. in san francisco, we take our project seriously. when it comes to these, we are absolutely united. when it comes to earthquake safety, all of us here came together last june to pass one of the largest bond measures for

public safety and the structure. last night, we put on the ballot yet another bond to rebuild our private sector buildings. this project is remarkably important. just in closing, i want to say as a former small business person the impact of this project not just on jobs, but the impact on our small businesses, particularly our disadvantaged businesses, cannot be underestimated. thank you. the warmup. . b-- be warm. [applause] >> let me acknowledge the new statewide director was not able to join us today, but i want to invite my partner and friend and colleague, the district for caltrans director of safety.

he deserves as much credit as anybody else for this project. [applause] >> thank you. i know it is cold. i will try to run through this fast with my frozen brain. good morning and thank you for being here today as we celebrate the groundbreaking of the second major contract in a world class presidio park for a project. when completed it will achieve seismic safety for this important corridor. phase two of it will make sure that this meets the seismic standards. it will also assure that the national park can have access to the presidio, which is sorely needed. the battery is to our left. that is one of two short tunnels that would connect the

highway with the presidio. the top of the tunnel will connect the historic battery to lincoln boulevard and the national cemetery and give access to bicycles that go to the trails behind us. a temporary bypass would be built to allow traffic unimpeded during construction. the contract is funded entirely by the american recovery and reinvestment act of 2009. it started sooner than expected thanks to governor schwarzenegger's efforts in expediting this and getting it funded. this is getting construction workers back to where they belong, improving our aging transportation infrastructure. from this location, you can see the construction activity this project has created. the structure was built in 1936. the new one will accommodate future transportation needs and improve safety with wider lanes a continued shoulder and a wide

landscaped area, and it will separate the traffic for northbound and southbound. this is an exciting time with the department and also the construction industry. the presidio parkway is the result of the great partnership between the department, the transportation administration, the federal highway administration, the presidio trust, and many other agencies that had to come together with different agendas to be sure this project is built while enhancing the environment. our california highway patrol is well represented. thank you for being here and for keeping our highways safe. thanks for all coming here for this event. the last thing is stay safe while you are driving.

thank you very much. [applause] >> i know there is a tremendous risk in these events as the temperature dips. good will can turn into hatred. [laughter] i am going to try to wrap this up very quickly, but we could not wrap up this event -- that is my cute -- without hearing very briefly -- emphasis on briefly -- from one of the businesses working on the project. by way of introduction i am going to say that the president of that company is the most appropriately dressed person for the occasion. she actually dressed warmup. let us invite her to the podium. [applause] >> good morning, everyone.

thanks for that graceful introduction. as you have heard, my name is julie berry. we do concrete pumping. i am a certified local business enterprise. i am also a certified firm located in the bayview district here in this warm city of san francisco. we are grateful for the opportunity to work on the presidio parkway doyle drive replacement project. we are doubly grateful. not only did we have the opportunity to win a contract, but additionally we are going to be working on contract for. the total value of those contracts is approximately $3 million. you're probably wondering -- how did you do that? what i did was i attended -- just done the street, i attended and out -- event for small business enterprises

conducted by paul prendergast and his team. that afforded me the opportunity. all of the general contractors were there, and i had the opportunity as a small business to reach out to each of them face to face and talk about my business and how i can team with them and work on this project together. being a woman-owned firm, with my husband out here in the audience and my son running this truck here -- they have been at my side. and i cannot tell you what this means to my business. it has been a struggle sometimes. it has been rewarding. it has had opportunities. overall, it has been wonderful. because of the presidium parkway, i was able to increase my staff by 65%. additionally, i was able to purchase equipment to put on

this project. this equipment is called a boom pump and it comes concrete. it can pump 173 cubic yards of concrete for hours and had a reach of 147 feet. you can imagine the efficiency that is going to bring to the general contractors on this project. this is economic recovery in action, the ability to hire new people and the ability to buy equipment to put on a project. to us, every opportunity counts. every payroll that we make, every business loan payment terms, because it means we are coming back from one of the darkest economic times in our history. it is our responsibility to take this opportunity and take it forward. i would like to share a story of how we were able to pay this forward. we are located in the bayview district.

we are a couple of blocks from bay shore boulevard and a few blocks away from third street. one of the most iconic businesses in the southeast part of san francisco is bodie concrete. they have been a landmark in san francisco forever. this is how we met our new employees. my son was out pumping country when a driver walked up to him and said, "my son has been unemployed for a long time, and he needs a job. he has always loved concrete pumping." nixon was so excited that someone shared the same enthusiasm he does about concrete pumping that we hired that young man. he is now working for us today. he has been there for nine months and is one of our best concrete pumpers. this is what economic recovery books like. i am proud we had the opportunity to hire a new employee. i do not know if you are aware.

on march 18, president obama signed and hiring incentive act. that allows small businesses to hire new employees. you get some tax breaks and incentives to can apply to your peril that will help you as a small business. we are utilizing this program. it is a big investment for us. we are also proud of the fact that we are signatories to operating engineers local chapter 3. their mission is quality jobs and the best possible wages, fringe benefits, and working conditions for their members. they have sponsored everyone of their -- we have sponsored everyone of our employees into the union and we look forward to them being active for years to come. opportunity does not stop at royal drive. because we have an expanded workforce, at new equipment, and do not get to perform brilliantly only for our prime

sponsors, but did to compete. we can now compete where we never could before with the small business enterprise. we have a job on the san francisco general hospital, a small job we won, but there are many other new projects coming up in the city and in the bay area the will allow us an opportunity to compete at a different level. in closing, i would like to say for us the presidio parkway was a game changer. i think this is exactly what president obama and speaker pelosi wanted to have happened with the project. to cici myers, thanks for the opportunity to be a part of your team. to the city of san francisco, to caltrans, thank you from the

bottom of my heart. thank you for understanding how critically important small and disadvantaged businesses are to the fabric of the great city, our state, and our nation. we will do you proud on this project. you have my word on it. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, julie. we have no doubt that you will make a sprout on this project. so will the other contractors on this incredible project. let me promise you from the podium that for the next ground- breaking we will have hot chocolate for you. thank you all very much. [applause]

>> good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us. today is a very special day in san francisco. it marks our celebration of the bicycle injunction we have been suffering under for about four years now. today, we are able to begin in earnest and aggressive bike plan implementation.

divide plan implementation will increase the amount of bike lanes by 64% here in the city. we currently have 48 miles of land making us one of the most likable cities, and i think everyone recognizes that this is just another step in our establishing ourselves as a world-class white city. with that, i would like to turn it over to our mayor, who has been a champion as we went through the legal battle we had to go through. -- establishing ourselves as a world-class bicycle city. gavin newsom thank you to the members of the -- mayor newsom: thank you to the members of the board that are here, to all the activism and intensity and passion that represents the people of the city that stepped up, step in since 2006. congratulations, and welcome to a new era of bicycling in san francisco. i think it is incredibly important and suggested that we

sort of set the tone of bicycling in the city in this context, that since the injunction in 2006, remarkably, that basically shut us down in terms of being able to put up new bike racks for these boxes or enhancing our bike lanes, we saw a 54% increase in bicycling. since the injunction was established, which is rather remarkable. meaning with no new enhancements, we saw a huge increase in the desire of pent- up demand to bicycle. what makes this so significant is that now, with this injunction lifted and the ability is now referencing the increase of 35 miles, another 45 projects to get us up to 75 miles of our network, to be able to move forward as we are today, to move forward as we are today, to be able to do all of these